Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s resignation from office on Sunday night after the unexpectedly heavy referendum defeat opens a period of political instability and high risks of market volatility, declaring as winners populist and anti-establishment parties but leaving on the ground no sound government alternative.

Almost 60% of Italians voted against the constitutional reforms promoted by Renzi to scrap the Senate of many of its legislative powers and modernize Italy’s rusty institutional framework, speeding-up the decision-making process. If the reform had passed, it would have been the first major constitutional overhaul after the 1946 referendum when Italians were called to choose between the monarchy and the republic.

But for the majority of Italians the referendum stood as a “no” vote of protest against Renzi’s “one-man show” leadership. Many voters were convinced by the slogans and rhetoric of populist parties such the Five Star Movement and the Northern League who are now calling for an early vote and a “new era” in European politics, pushing for an exit of Italy from the eurozone.

“Our victory shows that Italians have also said ‘no’ to the austere and destructive policies of the European Union and to the diktats of Germany. It’s about time to ask Italian voters, through a new referendum, whether they want to stay or leave the euro-area,” Five Star Movement deputy Alfonso Bonafede told TIME.

The Five Star Movement and the far-right Northern League party also want a new immigration policy that shares the burden of incoming asylum seekers more equitably among member states and ends the Dublin Treaty, under which refugees are permitted to claim asylum in the country where they first arrive, and is thus penalizing Italy.

Northern League leader Matteo Salvini was the first Italian populist to hail the referendum victory, in a tweet suggesting it was also a victory for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and France’s National Front leader Marine Le Pen:

Le Pen, for her part, congratulated Salvini straight after the first exit polls, stating in a Tweet how a new populist front has gained ground in Europe despite the narrow victory in Austria on Sunday of moderate leader Alexander Van der Bellen over his far right rival Norbert Hofer of Austria’s Freedom Party.

Now that Renzi has resigned, there is the question of what happens next. The future of Italy lies in the hands of head of state Sergio Mattarella, a former constitutional court judge who will see if there is another candidate supported by the same Democratic majority able to replace Renzi. The former premier will most unlikely accept a second mandate as leader of a caretaker government up to the next general elections in 2018, and Mattarella believes an early vote would be counter-productive at the moment.

The main goal is to reassure financial markets and avoid a run on sovereign bonds and banks, which are weighted down by 360 billion euros of bad loans. Following the Italian referendum vote, the euro lost ground more than it had with Brexit.

In order to ease market volatility and placate fears of a sovereign debt crisis, analysts said Renzi’s replacement should be a “credible” leader such as current Finance Minister Pier Carlo Padoan, a “technical” rather than a political figure who is Brussel’s main interlocutor on reforms, fiscal adjustment, and economic recovery.

Italy’s high public debt and its ailing banks that seem unable to survive without some sort of state support are the weak link in the chain, and Italy’s Achilles’ heel in the looming period of instability. “Financial markets hate uncertainty and this scares away investors. We will be facing a prolonged difficult political phase of uncertainty that could last years as there appears to be no concrete solutions at government level to weather the turmoil. How much could an interim cabinet really accomplish?” said Pietro Reichlin, Finance professor at Rome-based LUISS University.

The European commission granted Renzi until early next year for a final evaluation of Italy’s 2017 budget, which is still being finalized by parliament. Prior to the vote, Italy’s top industrial lobby Confindustria had warned that a “no” victory could make the country slip back into recession with a 1.9% drop in GDP. The referendum blow would trigger a drop in consumer and business confidence, it warned, raising the cost of debt issuance and scaring away foreign capital.

The worst case scenario is if Mattarella fails to find an interim government. There would be an early vote as of April, which could be a recipe for chaos. There would be a high risk that two different majorities in each branch of parliament emerges, given the referendum defeat has also killed the new electoral law wanted by Renzi for the Lower House election.

Yet the referendum results can be seen in a more favorable light for the soon-to-be former Prime Minister: the “yes” votes in favour of Renzi’s reform – and therefore of Renzi himself – were 40%, meaning that Renzi’s Democrat party (despite a dissident minority) is still arguably the leading political force in the country and would most likely win an early vote.

The “no” front is made of many different groups that running alone have no chance of success, not even the Five Star Movement. Their only common denominator was the anti-Renzi crusade, and with Renzi now out of the picture not much else keeps them together anymore. For Italy’s populists, this victory may end up being short-lived.

(ROME)—Italian Premier Matteo Renzi announced he will resign Monday after suffering a stinging loss in a reforms referendum, triggering immediate calls from a populist party and other opposition forces for elections to be held soon.

“The ‘No’s’ have won in an extraordinary clear-cut way,” Renzi told reporters in Rome about an hour after polls had closed in Sunday’s balloting.

“I lost and the post that gets eliminated is mine,” Renzi said. “The government’s experience is over, and in the afternoon I’ll go to the Quirinal Hill to hand in my resignation” to President Sergio Mattarella.

Leaders of the populist 5-Star Movement, which is led by comic Beppe Grillo, joined the chorus for early elections. The 5-Stars are the chief rivals of Renzi’s Democrats and are anxious to achieve national power for the first time.

With ballots counted from nearly half of the polling stations, the “No” votes were running at nearly 60 percent to 40 percent for the “Yes” votes on reforms Renzi claimed were vital to modernize Italy.

Mattarella as head of state would have to decide whether to accept any resignation. Renzi is expected to be asked to stay on at least until a budget bill can be passed later this month and to shepherd a months-long electoral reform process.

Opposition leader Matteo Salvini, of the anti-immigrant Northern League, hailed the referendum as a “victory of the people against the strong powers of three-quarters of the world.”

Many had read the referendum as an outlet for growing anti-establishment, populist sentiment in Europe.

The self-assured Renzi late last year pledged to offer his resignation if the referendum on overhauling a good part of the 1948 Constitution went down to defeat.

That was months before Britain’s David Cameron had made his ill-fated bet on the referendum on whether the U.K. should stay in the European Union. He lost that bet.

In Italy, the referendum was required because the reforms were approved by less than two-thirds of Parliament. But Renzi raised the stakes, turning the referendum into a virtual plebiscite on himself, when he pledged to quit if Italians turned their back on reforms to streamline the Senate and give the central government more powers at the cost of the regions.

Some opposition leaders started clamoring for early elections after Renzi’s reform measure went down to defeat.

“We are ready to vote as soon as possible,” Salvini told reporters.

Renzi had been hoping to survive the rising populist forces that have gained traction across Europe.

Some of Renzi’s political opponents were hoping to tap into the populist sentiment that has been gaining ground with the U.K. vote in June to leave the European Union and the U.S. presidential victory last month by billionaire political outsider Donald Trump.

A “Yes” vote would have strengthened Renzi’s 2 ½-year-old government, giving it impetus to complete its five-year term and time to prepare for elections in 2018, while a “No” vote favored early elections sometime next year.

During the referendum campaign, the risk of political instability in Italy, Europe’s fourth-largest economy, triggered market reaction, with bank stocks sinking and borrowing costs on sovereign debt rising.

]]>Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi gives a press conference focused on the shipwreck of migrants last night off the Libyan coast, on April 19, 2015 in Rome.What to Know About Italy’s Constitutional Referendumhttp://time.com/4584639/italy-referendum-2016-matteo-renzi/
Thu, 01 Dec 2016 17:14:25 +0000http://time.com/?p=4584639]]>

Italians will vote in a crucial constitutional referendum on Dec. 4, where they have to choose between backing Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s political reforms, or opening the door to instability in one of Europe‘s largest economies.

Here’s what you need to know about the plebiscite that Renzi has bet his premiership on:

What are Italians voting on?A package of constitutional reforms which Renzi says will make the country more governable. Italy’s two legislative chambers— the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies— currently have perfectly equal powers. This means bills can bounce back and forth between them for months and sometimes years until they are finally approved in identical form. The system was created after the war in reaction to the fascist dictatorship of Benito Mussolini, but today the Senate’s sway over legislation is blamed for the country’s time-consuming decision-making process.

The constitutional changes being voted on will strip the Senate of many of its legislative powers by reducing the number of senators to 100 from 315, of which five will be appointed by the president and 95 will be appointed (rather than elected) by regional bodies. Another change is the clawback of decision-making powers from Italy’s 20 regional governments to the central government. This will strengthen executive power, Renzi argues, finally freeing up Italy’s government to work on reviving its moribund economy.

Why is it so significant ?Renzi says he will step down if he does not win this Sunday’s referendum. If he does, a caretaker government would likely take over until early elections, which could clear the way for the populist, center left Five Star Movement to get a foothold in government, perhaps in alliance with the Euroskeptic, far-right Northern League. The fear is that these anti-establishment parties could call for a referendum on whether Italy should leave the euro.

The other fear is market turmoil if Renzi’s changes are rejected. Recession-hit Italian banks need to raise at least $21 billion in capital in the coming months to cover losses, Reuters reports, and the country’s debts are running at 133% of GDP. Further volatility could frighten investors and savers, and push it into a financial crisis — officials and senior bankers have told a variety of media outlets that eight of Italy’s cash-strapped banks could fail in light of a “no” vote. Coming so soon after Brexit, this could be a significant nail in the coffin of the European project.

Who is against it?Detractors are worried that Renzi’s reforms will give Prime Ministers too much power. The Economist has argued that a nominated Senate would likely be filled by crooked politicians from corrupt regions and municipalities. Renzi has also passed an electoral law that guarantees the largest party 54% of the seats in the Chamber of Deputies. This means that a weakened Senate and majority in the lower house will give the premier almost unlimited executive power. Even the former, and controversial, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has warned that the changes would “lead us straight toward a non-democracy.”

As well as spying an opportunity to win power, the populist Five Star movement says the center-left prime minister is attempting do away with the country’s systems of checks and balances. Five Star— founded by comedian Beppe Grillo— started an “I Say No” tour, imploring Italians to reject the changes.

According to the Guardian, Five Star politician Alessandro Di Battista, told a rally that the referendum was the latest ploy by the insulated political class: “This unelected senate will be constituted by the arselickers of the various parties…the election of Donald Trump is the American people’s business,” he said, the Guardian reports. “and by those who are in trouble with the courts and need parliamentary immunity. They’re sealing the system off so it can’t be changed in the future.”

Who is ahead in the polls?Final polls before Sunday’s referendum are predicting Renzi’s defeat, indicating a 53.5% to 46.5% for “no” — though many are undecided, and few think polls are to be trusted after the Brexit and Trump shocks. However, populist revolts have swept through the West this year and Renzi’s referendum, quite like U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron’s ‘Brexit’ moment, might have given Italians a perfect platform to rebel against political elites.

A migration organization says that about 340 migrants have died or gone missing in four Mediterranean Sea shipwrecks over the past two-and-a-half days.

Flavio Di Giacomo, Italy spokesman for the International Organization for Migration, says that brings to over 4,500 the number of migrants who have died or disappeared so far this year making the risky sea voyage, the deadliest year on record.

Di Giacomo said Thursday that the recent toll includes a rescue overnight by Doctors without Borders of 27 migrants, who reported that more than 130 people had been on board their rubber dinghy when it sank. Seven bodies were recovered.

Di Giacomo said the toll is increasing this year as smugglers are forcing departures despite rough winter seas.

2016 is shaping up to be a year of electoral surprises, with Britain voting to leave the E.U. and the U.S. sending Donald Trump to the White House. On Dec. 4, it’s Italy’s turn as a crucial constitutional reform referendum could decide the future of the country — and the fate of its young Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.

The referendumwill ask voters to back the approval by parliament of Renzi’s ambitious reforms. He wants to strip the Senate of many of its legislative powers and modernize Italy’s rusty institutional framework by speeding-up its sluggish decision-making process.

Were Italians to vote against the reform, the premier has repeatedly pledged to step down from office ahead of the next 2018 general election. This could trigger the risk of an early vote, delay reforms and offset political chaos at a delicate moment when the economic outlook is still gloomy, with the risk of jeopardising investor confidence and public debt sustainability.

A prolonged period of political instability could trigger a financial speculative attack on sovereign treasury bonds due to Italy’s elevated public debt exposure, raising the spread between Italian and German bonds, with the risk of fuelling a financial crisis similar to the one of 2011.

With only weeks to go before voters cast their ballots, Renzi is now doing everything he can to avoid a ‘Brexit’ style defeat —. Italian populists and right-wing parties are already exploiting to their advantage Trump’s unexpected presidential victory, saying it has lowered Renzi’s chances of referendum success making him bound to be the next “domino” to fall in post-Brexit Europe.

“The U.S. elections have shown that a wind of change is blowing across both sides of the Atlantic and will soon wipe Renzi away. His time is over and Italy needs a new government”, says Massimiliano Fedriga, Lower House leader of the Northern League party, a member of the “no” front.

How might Renzi avoid a similar populist uprising to the ones that swept through Britain and the U.S.? The answer could be found on a recent weekend inside the Music Inn, a cozy lounge bar in Rome’s historical centre popular for its live music soirées. There, people gathered for a “Constitutional Concert” aimed at explaining to Italians why they should vote to change their 70-year-old constitution. Over Prosecco and finger food, a lively debate kicked off among participants until the musicians came on stage to play R&B and jazz sessions.

Aware that the vote’s outcome will determine the future not just of his government, but also of his entire political career, Renzi has gone directly to the people to increase his chances of success. He has mounted an aggressive “do-it-yourself” campaign that encourages Italians around the world — not just at home — to raise enthusiasm for a “yes” vote. An “army” of pro-yes referendum committees made up of thousands of local volunteers, scattered across each continent, are spreading the word virally under the slogan “Basta Un Sì” meaning “Just One Yes Is Enough” to change Italy.

These pro-referendum committees resemble a party within Renzi’s Democrat group. According to latest data by the “yes” campaign body there are currently about 5,000 committees in Italy, up from 2,000 last month as more rise almost on a daily basis. Roughly 50,000 volunteers are taking part in the Italy campaign while a total of 34 foreign committees have been set-up in the rest of the world to motivate expats: 23 in Europe, 2 in Asia (Australia and United Arab Emirates); 2 in Africa (Tunisia and Kenya); 5 in North America and 2 in South America.

The vote of Italians abroad could be crucial to the referendum’s passage. Following the approval of a new law, even Italian citizens who are not foreign residents (roughly 5 million) but are travelling or working in another country for at least three months can vote by mail.

“It’s the rise of the do-it-yourself campaign and we’re registering a lot of enthusiasm from ordinary citizens who contact us to take part in it. These committees are all spontaneous, grassroots initiatives. The more we are, the higher the chances of winning”, says Rudy Francesco Calvo, spokesman of “Basta Un Sì” .

This is how the DIY campaign works: Any Italian citizen can set up a local committee by finding 5 other people and paying a €50 online registration fee to the campaign central body. Once registered, she can then download banners, stickers, flyers, logos and colourful manuals with clear Q&As explaining the benefits of the reform from the pro-referendum website and start battling on her own, going door-to-door to convince swing voters who still haven’t decided what to vote.

Social events are key to this grassroots campaign. Volunteers organise dinners, evening drinks, parties, end-of-day gatherings, concerts and tea sessions during which Italians are invited to share their views, express doubts and debate on what this referendum means for their nation.

“There are no rules. Each committee is free to hold the weirdest events as long as these help to lure voters’ attention, creating social buzz over the reform. We want their imagination to run wild”, says Calvo. During the hot summer months a bunch of volunteers in Italy even came up with the crazy idea of having watermelon-eating contests to promote the “yes” vote.

Foreign-based activists are perhaps even more tireless than those at home. In Stockholm the local campaign committee holds picturesque “Constitutional Coffee” meetings at cafés while in London there are weekly “Aperi-Sì” soirées, “Yes-Aperitif” evenings that link hardcore politics to the pleasure of sipping a beer or Italy’s iconic Apérol Spritz cocktail.

“It’s a chance to rub shoulders with voters after office hours, chilling out together while discussing the reform’s impact,” says Mina Zingariello, who coordinates the Basta Un Sì campaign in the UK where roughly 600,000 Italians are now living. “These social gatherings make the referendum debate more sexy and appealing.”

Mina, who also hands out flyers on Sundays in front of Italian churches in London, says she has has seen a growing interest among her expat compatriots in Renzi’s referendum following Brexit. “People are curious, they want to be informed”, she says. “Italians living in the U.K. think that many British citizens voted to leave the E.U. without having a clear picture of what they were actually voting for. And Italians don’t want to make that same mistake with this referendum.”

The ‘yes’ campaign will need all the help it can get. Recent polls suggest a tie at the moment between the “yes” and “no” fronts, with the “no” slightly ahead with 3 percentage points. But if the “no” vote does emerge victorious, it would translate into “Renzexit” — as Italian populists, nationalists and far-right parties have already dubbed the potential departure of Renzi from Italy’s political stage.

Were Renzi to resign from office, Italy’s head of state Sergio Mattarella would need to evaluate if there is another candidate supported by the Democrat majority, or another political coalition, willing to step in and run the country until the next general vote in 2018. But if all Renzi’s ministers step-down with him and Mattarella fails in finding an interim government, then an early vote would take place.

This worst-case scenario would translate into a power void of at least 8 to 12 months before a new government is formed, as political parties battle to identify candidates through tedious primaries or strike difficult alliances while putting aside the country’s economic woes. The European Commission last week cut Italy’s growth forecasts for this year to 0.9% of GDP.

Much will depend on swing voters. Many Italians are still skeptic: roughly 26% haven’t decided yet and 14% have not understood what’s really at stake with the referendum. Renzi’s supporters have only weeks left to bring them over to his side. “I’m not sure yet what I’ll vote,”, says Luigi Franco, a Rome-based public employee. He believes the Prime Minister should have gone further, and cleared the Senate out completely. “That would have been a real revolution. He lost a great opportunity”.

One thing’s sure: the December vote is bound to be the second most important referendum in Italy’s history, after the 1946 vote when post-war Italians had to choose between monarchy and republic, explains Sergio Fabbrini, head of the School of Government at Rome’s LUISS University.

“Exactly 70 years ago Italians were called to decide their future. Same happens today: our republic, despite being very young, is badly in need of a restyle. We need to change our outdated constitution that makes governing Italy mission impossible”, says Fabbrini.

But the prevailing trends look bleak for Renzi. Populists in Italy and across Europe – from Germany to Austria, France and the United Kingdom – have defeated the establishment at local and national ballots. Unless he can convince voters that he is the vehicle for real change, Italy’s prime minister could join Hillary Clinton and David Cameron on the list of 2016’s political victims.

Italian police allegedly beat, used stun batons and sexually abused asylum seekers in an attempt to obtain their fingerprints, according to a new report released on Wednesday by Amnesty International.

Amnesty collected testimonials from two dozen asylum seekers alleging they were subjected to excessive force. The human rights group says these instances of abuse could amount to torture and that the E.U.’s ‘Hotspot’ approach—to swiftly identify, register and fingerprint migrants landing on Europe’s external borders (like Italy)—fueled this “appalling abuse.”

Around 16 testimonials—which include children—involve beatings. A 25-year-old Eritrean, Helen, recalled being slapped on the face, “I don’t remember how many times,” she said, in early May for refusing to provide fingerprints. Adam, 27, from Sudan, told Amnesty of an incident this summer at a police station near the port of Catania after he refused to give his fingerprints. “There were six policemen in uniform,” he said. “With a baton they hit me on the shoulders, on the hip, and on the little finger on the left hand, which since then is twisted. I fell down and they started kicking me, I don’t know how many times, it lasted 10 minutes or so.”

He also alleged that police officers sexually abused him because he continued to resist fingerprinting. While he sat on an aluminum chair “with an opening on the seat,” Adam said he was allegedly told to undress and, “[they] took my testicles with the plier, and pulled twice.”

The second case of alleged sexual abuse recorded by Amnesty was done to a 16-year-old boy, Ishaq, from Sudan. He claims that police officers in a Turin train station took his group into a room and “started laughing” as they made them “undress, all naked.” When he resisted fingerprinting, a police officer pulled his genitals while another took a photo of him. “They held me by my four limbs, one person for each. The fifth pulled my penis down until she got me seated. At that point one took a photo of me, while another one was turning my head towards the camera” he said. “For two days I bled every time I peed.”

A number of other beatings in the report involved stun batons, which disrupts muscle function and causes pain through electric shocks. A 16-year-old, also from Sudan, who spoke to Amnesty said he was detained in a police station in Sicily after landing in the southern Italian island. “After three days… they took me to the ‘electricity room,'” he told Amnesty. “The police then asked me to give fingerprints. I refused. Then they gave me electricity with a stick, many times on the left leg, then on the right leg, chest and belly. I was too weak, I couldn’t resist and at that point they took both my hands and put them on the machine. I couldn’t resist.”

Italy’s Refugee Council, Consiglio Italiano per i Rifugiati, told TIME that they saw four migrants from Sudan who reported abuse in the coastal city of Taranto. “They stated that they were closed in a bus for 3 days and they were released only after being fingerprinted. One of them reported also beating on a leg,” the council said. According to Amnesty, while the vast majority of migrants are happy to provide thumbprints, certain people refuse as they want to seek asylum in another European country.

Countries like Italy and Greece have dealt with the bulk of migrants arriving to the continent. Last year, the ‘hotspot approach’ and an emergency-relocation scheme, where the processing of asylum seekers would be transferred to other European countries, were efforts by Brussels to ease the pressure on such frontline European states. Through Italy’s ‘hotspots,’ migrants are now screened and fingerprinted as soon as they step-off boats from the Mediterranean. Italian authorities then assess their legal status and separate people deemed asylum-seekers from the rest. Those considered ‘irregular migrants’ are usually repatriated.

Amnesty says this screening process is flawed because police officers lack appropriate training, and make decisions based based on answers by migrants who are ill-informed of their rights. “In their determination to reduce the onward movement of refugees and migrants to other member states, E.U. leaders have driven the Italian authorities to the limits–and beyond–of what is legal,” Matteo de Bellis, Amnesty International’s Researcher on Italy, said in a statement. “The result is that traumatized people, arriving in Italy after harrowing journeys, are being subjected to flawed assessments and in some instances appalling abuse at the hands of the police, as well as unlawful expulsions.”

Amnesty conducted interviews with 174 migrants for this report in 2016, Italy’s Interior Ministry has yet to respond to these allegations of abuse to either Amnesty or TIME.

]]>Italy MigrantsHere’s the Menu for the Obamas’ Final State Dinnerhttp://time.com/4535276/president-obama-white-house-dinner-menu-mario-batali/
Tue, 18 Oct 2016 17:29:53 +0000http://time.com/?p=4535276]]>

The White House is welcoming the Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini, this evening as they join Barack and Michelle Obama for their final state dinner.

Described by the White House as “an opportunity to recognize the depth and breadth of our relationship with Italy and exchange views on the future of Europe,” all the stops have been pulled out for this high-profile event, with entertainment from the singer Gwen Stefani and food prepared by acclaimed American chef Mario Batali. Here’s what’s on the menu:

Canapés to start

The delicious-sounding dinner will kick off with an assortment of canapés including fish in a sweet and sour source with eggplant, roasted figs with pesto and little tubes of puréed crab.

A “velvety pasta pillow”

Next up is what the White House menu describes as a “velvety pillow of paper-thin pasta” called agnolotti, which is stuffed with sweet potato, nutmeg, parsley and sage (with sprinkled cheese on top).

Seasonal delight

The next course is a roasted butternut squash, chicory, pumpkin and sheep’s cheese salad, drizzled with cider vinaigrette. According to the White House, this dish “captures the taste, color, and texture of the season.”

A meaty main course

Now it’s time for the main dish, beef tenderloin layered with bresaola (air dried salted beef), cheese, parsley, garlic and breadcrumbs. It will be served with a rather extravagantly garnished broccoli dish. A veggie option will also be provided.

Sweet tooth time

The meaty main will precede a green apple crostata—in other words, an Italian apple pie. The pie comes with caramel sauce, toffee crumble and buttermilk cream.

Oh wait, even more dessert

As well as the crostata, each table of guests will be provided with a platter of seasonal fruits and vegetables, from both the U.S. and Italy. The dessert includes a pumpkin, milk chocolate chestnuts, grapes, green peppers and tomatoes. There’s also a “beehive replica” (whatever that means!).

And here’s the menu in full:

Prior to the meal, guests are offered an assortment of passed canapés made with fresh ingredients from Mrs. Obama’s final harvest of the White House Kitchen Garden. These appetizers include Hamachi Agrodolce with recently harvest eggplant, roasted figs with speck and herb pesto made from the garden’s cinnamon basil, crab cannolis with homegrown currant tomatoes, and grilled rosemary lamb with freshly picked rosemary.

The first course is a velvety pillow of paper-thin pasta stuffed with a puree of sweet potatoes, garnished with a hint of nutmeg and Italian parsley, and topped with browned butter and sage leaves. The dish is finished with grated Vella Select Dry Monterey Jack cheese from Sonoma County, California, which adds a tangy and salty layer that complements the sweetness of the dish.

The next course is a composed salad of roasted butternut squash topped with bitter chicory, preserved pumpkin, and shaved ewe’s milk cheese from New York. It is drizzled with a raw apple cider vinaigrette made with DaVero extra virgin olive oil from California. This dish captures the taste, color, and texture of the season.

The main course is a Beef Braciole Pinwheel, an Italian Classic with a twist. The prime tenderloin is cut and lightly pounded, then layered with Bresaola, Fontina Cheese, parsley, garlic, and Panko breadcrumbs. It is sliced and served atop broccoli rabe, and garnished with a horseradish gremolata, apple matchsticks, and arugula.

The plated dessert is a green apple crostata. A flaky and delicate pasta frolla crust is filled with a tender semolina batter and a lightly poached green apple. It is finished with a thyme caramel sauce, with thyme from the White House Kitchen Garden, and crunchy toffee crumble, and topped with a creamy quenelle of buttermilk gelato.

Our festive seasonal theme continues with “Celebrating Autumn’s Harvest,” a handmade dessert creation served to each table. This treat highlights the fruits and vegetables of the season for both the United States and Italy. Made of chocolate and sugar, guests will enjoy a platter featuring a pumpkin, cornucopia, milk chocolate chestnuts, grapes, corn, pears, squash, tomatoes, peas, carrots, green peppers, and a beehive replica. The miniature pastry selections include a sweet corn crema and blackberry cup, a Concord grape chocolate leaf, orange and fig slices, a pumpkin cranberry tart, and tiramisu.

The red carpet is being rolled out by the White House Tuesday to welcome Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who is joining President Barack Obama for the last state dinner hosted by the commander-in-chief.

Many details of the high-profile state dinner remain under wraps, but what is clear is the importance of the U.S./Italian relationship to both political leaders. Here, the key things to know about Renzi’s visit to the White House

1. The Italian Prime Minister is facing a crucial referendum

Renzi is meeting with Obama less than two months before a critical referendum that is set to decide his fate as leader, similarly to how former British Prime Minister David Cameron met with the U.S. president ahead of the EU referendum in June.

Italians are voting Dec. 4 on Renzi’s proposal to amend the Italian constitution and dilute the power and size of the Italian Senate. If Renzi does not secure a victory for his constitutional changes, he has announced that he will resign – although in recent weeks he has declined to repeat this pledge.

If he did resign, it could have wider implications for the European Union, reports Euro News, “because it would open the door to the possibility of the Euroskeptic Five Star Movement getting into power, who have made no secret of wanting to hold a referendum on Italy leaving the Euro”.

Although many have cited the proposed reforms as a positive change for the country, including the U.S. ambassador in Rome, recent opinion polls suggest that Renzi will not be successful. Even though Obama will not speak his opinions of the referendum openly, his support will be understood and this dinner could help Renzi’s chances. That said, it’s worth remembering that Obama’s intercession into the ‘Brexit’ campaign did not give Cameron the victory he wanted.

2. Renzi and Obama have a close relationship

Renzi has been described as the Justin Trudeau of Italy, and shares a similar bond with the President to the Canadian Prime Minister.

Renzi has been one of Europe’s most vocal supporters of the free trade deals championed by Obama, who called Renzi “a leading voice in Europe,” after a White House meeting with the Italian politician last year. “I have been very impressed with the energy and the vision and the reforms that he is pursuing to unleash the potential of the Italian people and the Italian economy,” he said, the Washington Post reported at the time.

The Italian Prime Minister has used Obama’s former campaign manager Jim Messina, in his referendum fight, and he was the first European leader to back Hillary Clinton for the White House.

Renzi’s rise also has parallels to that of Obama. In a TIME article called Has Italy’s Left Found its Own Obama?, published in February 2009, the magazine compared the two leaders and revealed that “in [Renzi’s] primary, he ran a classic grass-roots campaign using the Internet, Facebook and other tactics drawn from Obama’s successful presidential run.”

3. The bonds between Italy and the U.S. are strengthening

Although German Chancellor Angela Merkel remains arguably Obama’s closest ally in Europe, the relationship between Italy and the U.S. continues to strengthen, particularly when it comes to Libya and anti-ISIS efforts.

Renzi has allowed the U.S. military to use Italian bases for strikes in Libya, and only last week Rome announced it was joining a new NATO force in eastern Europe that has angered Russia and is viewed with suspicion on Italy’s left, reports Reuters.

“Italy is a key member of our counter-ISIL coalition,” said White House press secretary Josh Earnest to journalists Monday, Politico reports. “Earnest said Italy has an ‘important role in trying to help their European partners confront the migration crisis,’ and he also mentioned the country’s “special relationship” with Libya and efforts in Syria,” the report continued.

4. All the stops are being pulled out at the state dinner

The White House is putting on quite a feast for the Italian leader. The food is being prepared by American chef Mario Batali, who is known for his Italian-inspired cuisine. Although the menu has not been revealed, officials told the New York Times that the 500 guests could expect “traditional Italian dishes that have been ingrained in American cuisine”. Entertainment will be provided by the singer Gwen Stefani (whose father is Italian-American) and the Guardian described the event as a “keenly anticipated… glamorous affair.”

A vineyard in the Abruzzo region of Central Italy has installed the tourist destination of your dreams, a wine fountain, Mashable reports. This magical destination is exactly what it sounds like, a fountain that flows 24-hours a day with red wine. And the best part is that the wine is completely free.

This so-called fontana di vino is located in the Dora Sarchese vineyard in the small town of Caldari di Ortona, which sits on the Italian pilgrimage route of Cammino di San Tommaso. According to The Local, the fountain is a joint project of the vineyard and a non-profit group that works to protect the pilgrimage route. It was inspired by a similar wine fountain that opened on Spain’s pilgrimage route, the Camino de Santiago de Compostela, a few years ago.

The Italian fountain is open to all travelers who find themselves thirsty for a glass of the locally grown, locally made wine, so long as you’re not a “drunkard” or “lout,” of course. According to the vineyard’s Facebook page those people are not invited and will have to make due with boring old water fountains instead.